1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly, to a vacuum cleaner and intake port unit thereof. Although the present invention is suitable for a wide range of applications, it is particularly suitable for performing both vacuum cleaning and steam cleaning.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Generally, a vacuum cleaner is a device that performs cleaning by sucking in air with dirt or dust from a floor or surface, filtering out the dirt or dust, and discharging the air. Vacuum cleaners are popularly used due to their convenience of use.
However, vacuum cleaners which perform cleaning by only sucking air have difficulty in cleaning up particles stuck on a floor, or removing stains from a floor. Recently, efforts have been made to develop a steam cleaner capable of removing particles stuck on a floor or stains from a floor.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective diagram of a steam cleaner according to a related art.
Referring to FIG. 1, a steam cleaner according to a related art consists of a body or unit 10 configured as an exterior of the steam cleaner, a heater or burner unit 20 provided within the unit 10 to generate steam by heating water, a control part 30 for selectively activating supply of the steam generated by the burner unit 20 and for controlling the amount of the supplied steam, a connecting hose 40 with one end connected to the unit 10, and a head part 50 connected to another end of the connecting hose 40 to spray the steam.
The head part 50 may be of various configurations or shapes, which may be detachably attached to the connecting hose 40. In this manner, a head part 50 having a shape suitable for a particular area to be cleaned may be attached and used.
Once a user activates the steam cleaner, steam is generated from the burner unit 20 provided within the unit 10 and is then sprayed from the head part 50 via the connecting hose 40 to remove filth or stains from a floor, or to facilitate removable by making the filth or stains moist or soft.
However, the above configured related art steam cleaner has the following problems.
First, the related art steam cleaner is not provided with a vacuum cleaning function, and thus does not permit normal vacuum cleaning. Accordingly, a separate vacuum cleaner is also required.
Second, in order to smoothly remove filth or stains from a floor, a pressure of steam blown from the head part should be maintained at a prescribed level. However, since the burner unit 20 generating the steam is provided within the unit 10, the steam generated from the burner unit 20 must be carried to the head part 50 via the connecting hose 40, which results in a lengthy flow path for the steam. The pressure and temperature of the steam are lowered during the lengthy flow, so that cleaning power of the steam is reduced. In order to compensate for this problem, the blowing pressure and temperature of the steam generated from the burner unit must be set higher. This raises product and operation costs for the cleaner.